We hope all of our US readers enjoy the long weekend, and get to spend some quality time relaxing with family and friends.
Many of us will be doing that, also, so it will be a bit slower this weekend. While we do have some very cool posts planned, there won't be a Weekend Review, or Weekend Web Review. We'll be back next weekend with the full range of content features.
Have a happy, safe and green weekend!
Any in-season eater will tell you that spring has officially sprung when the asparagus show up at the local farmers markets. Here in the Midwest, asparagus is often one of the few veggies ready when farmers markets open in the spring. Not only are they tasty, but they are low in calories and high in nutrients such as folic acid, beta-carotene, vitamin C, and potassium. This is a simple, yet sublime preparation that will showcase the flavor of this phenomenal veggie.
Balsamic Asparagus
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. On baking sheet or in baking dish, drizzle asparagus with olive oil, then toss with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Roast in oven for ten minutes, then drizzle with vinegar. Return to oven, roast 2-3 more minutes, until spears are bright green and "popping" in the oven. Spears should still have crunch.
Tip: Asparagus will tell you where the ends should be trimmed. Just bend in half gently–wherever the spear snaps is where you should trim. Compost the ends or add them to a veggie stock.
Why Recycled Paper Just Isn’t Good Enough
World Population Becomes More Urban Than Rural
Using Aluminum to Create Hydrogen
Aerorider: Three-Wheeled Enclosed Electric Bike
CSR: A Must for Big Firms in Africa
(more)
(Posted by David Zaks in News and Views at 8:49 PM)
Here’s the staff of Greenpeace International in Amsterdam celebrating their Big Blue March day for the whales.
© Greenpeace
Join the Big Blue March flickr group » and post your Big Blue Photo!
This wonderful video features kids from a school in Guatemala, who are showing their support for the whales by rapping!
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Visit the myspace profile for Unorthodox Films
If you want to add to the chorus of whale defenders worldwide, join the Big Blue March May 27th. Wear something blue!
Frequent AutoblogGreen tipster Linton has begun uploading some cool Green Car video clips to YouTube.
This one is a nice flashback clip of the Ford Model U, a concept introduced in 2003, before AutoblogGreen was around. That’s why there’s not a lot here on our site about this soy- and corn-based component, hydrogen-powered vehicle. But the video clip shows that media excitement about a cool and green concept vehicle is not at all limited to cars like the Volt. It’ll be fun to watch as the next four years pass and we look back to see whether the Chevy Volt remains fodder for flashback posts or if it’s a car we’ve put through the paces in the AutoblogGreen Garage.
We’ll be featuring more of Linton’s videos as he continues to upload them. And, to everyone, keep those tips coming.
[Source: YouTube]
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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD Step behind the curtain at Ford Motor. Experience the documentary first-hand.
The United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, has pledged to plant more than 9 million trees in areas of human displacement this year, enlisting both refugees and host communities to meet this goal. By distributing seedlings of various species in denuded areas, UNHCR hopes to plant more than 2.6 million trees in and around refugee camps in Tanzania, 1.7 million in Sudan, and 1.8 million in Ethiopia. There were an estimated 8.4 million refugees worldwide in 2006, according to UNHCR, while the ranks of internally displaced persons (IDPs)—those who do not cross an international border—are estimated at between 20 and 24 million [Some NGOs in the field say UNHCR’s numbers are extremely conservative – ed.]. Although some refugees and IDPs end up in urban settings, the large majority find themselves in marginal regions of poor countries, where they have little choice but to cut and collect wood for shelters, lighting, cooking, and to make room for cultivating crops. The result can be serious deforestation and soil erosion that hurts both refugees and host communities, especially if large numbers of people arrive suddenly or are unable to return home for extended periods of time. In the aftermath of the 1994 genocide, some… (more)
(Posted by WorldChanging Team in Refugees and Relief at 11:16 AM)
Worldchanging ally Charlie Stross is not only a science fiction writer of some reknown, but one of our best thinkers about technology and the future as well. Recently he published the following speech on his blog. It’s a sharp piece of thinking, which informs in new ways all sorts of subjects we’ve covered here before, and he’s graciously given us permission to post it here as well. -Alex Shaping the future Good afternoon, and thank you for inviting me here today. I understand that you’re expecting a talk about where the next 20 years are taking us, how far technology will go, how people will use the net, and whether big shoulder pads and food pills will be fashionable. Personally, I’m still waiting for my personal jet car — I’ve been waiting about fifty years now — and I mention this as a note of caution: while personal jet cars aren’t obviously impossible, their non-appearance should give us some insights into how attempts to predict the future go wrong. I’m a science fiction writer by trade, and people often think that means I spend a lot of time trying to predict possible futures. Actually, that’s not the job of the… (more)
(Posted by WorldChanging Team in Emerging Technologies at 11:04 AM)
Filed under: Mitsubishi
An EPA award has been given unto Mitsubishi for a 30 percent more efficient automotive A/C unit. The 30 percent target was set by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) and as such will supplement a slight improvement in fuel economy in whatever vehicle it’s installed in. With 30 percent less energy required to run the A/C, the alternator doesn’t have to work as hard to generate the power it needs. Therefore, less stress and wear are put on the engine, theoretically requiring less maintenance. These are small improvements, but you know what they say about baby steps.
The A/C unit was installed and tested on the current Outlander, with excellent results. Come this fall, it will be installed in all new Outlanders sold in the U.S.
Press release after the jump
[Source: Mitsubishi]
“Power-saving Automotive Air Conditioner” jointly developed with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries wins U.S. EPA award
Tokyo, May 25, 2007 – Mitsubishi Motors Corporation announces that it has won a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 2007 Climate Protection Award in recognition of its contribution to protection of the global climate for the Power-saving Automotive Air Conditioning Unit that it has developed in collaboration with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
In its selection of the Power-saving Air Conditioner for the award, the EPA cited the significant reductions in power consumption it achieves as a result of improvements to the air conditioner itself and to its control system. In the joint project, MHI developed a new compressor and other components and undertook developmental testing of the system. MMC, for its part, fitted the air conditioner to a Mitsubishi Outlander on-road SUV model and boosted the operational efficiency of the system by making improvements to the vehicle body and to the control system and was also responsible for practical utility testing.
The Power-saving Automotive Air Conditioner developed by MMC and MHI clears the 30% improvement target in air conditioner system efficiency called for under the Improved Mobile Air Conditioning (I-MAC) research program launched by the Society of Automobile Engineers (SAE) and the EPA in 2004.
The EPA awards are made to individuals, bodies, corporations and governmental organizations in recognition of exceptional technological achievements in the field of climate protection. The award system was introduced in 1998 following the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol in 1997. Nominations are reviewed by an international panel of judges comprised of past award winners from government, industry, and non-governmental organizations. EPA makes the final award selections.
MMC will introduce an Outlander model fitted with the Power-saving Air Conditioner onto the North American market in the fall this year.
MMC has adopted an all-embracing approach in addressing such issues as the environment and the diversification of energy sources. The company is actively engaged in the development of a wide range of technologies including the iMiEV next-generation electric vehicle, a next-generation clean diesel engine, and a flexible fuel vehicle (FFV) capable of running on various blends of gasoline and ethanol. Last year the company also launched the “Pajero Forest & Local Mountain Restoration Initiative” that aims to conserve and cultivate Japan’s forests and woodlands.
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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD Step behind the curtain at Ford Motor. Experience the documentary first-hand.
Filed under: Ethanol
As we oh-so bravely predicted, gas that was selling for about a dollar less per gallon than the national average this past week was awful popular. The price was lowered at a gas station in Indianapolis as a promotional event just before this weekend’s Indy 500 race, and the $2.25 cost for a gallon of E10 (I’d heard it was going to be $2.20 a gallon) was enough to bring in the cars, trucks and SUVs whose drivers “were eager to find their place at the pumps,” as Domestic Fuel put it. The IndyCar drivers on hand were just a bonus, signing autographs and talking up the biofuel. You can hear driver Scott Sharp give a shout out to ethanol here and see more pictures of the event here.
[Source: Domestic Fuel]
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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD Step behind the curtain at Ford Motor. Experience the documentary first-hand.